I wanted to share some perspective of new home sales and new home construction pipeline for the balance of this year, and the next couple years in the Beach Cities. Check out the short video & feel free to reach out with any questions, or any real estate needs!

“Hermosa Beach will temporarily permit residents of commercial areas to rent out their homes to vacationers on sites like Airbnb.com — even as it fights a court challenge to its outright ban on them in most neighborhoods.”

In December the Federal Reserve announced that they were raising their short term rates for the first time in 2016 by a quarter percentage point between 0.50% and 0.75%. This was only the second time in more than a decade. Although they projected rates would raise more quickly in 2017 that did not happen after their first policy meeting February 1st. The Feds reaffirmed in their meeting that they would hold firm on interest rates for now although projecting increases would come later in the year.

Please take time to review the latest housing market trends for our South Bay Cities below. Sales in Palos Verdes, Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach continue to rise while Redondo Beach shows a dip in sales.

CoreLogic reported in late December that home buying saw the fastest November in more than four years even though the month’s sales totaled 7.5% below 1988 month average. The surge in sales increased what buyers paid. Our relatively robust local job market created more job opportunities along with pay hikes nationwide. Fewer absentee buyers were reported. Mortgage financing was not used in 21% of the deals.

Manhattan Beach is a classic southern California beach town a hidden gem in the metropolis of Los Angeles, just south of Los Angeles International Airport.It’s clean, nearly always sunny, with volleyballs, surfers and sunbathers. Many dining and shopping options are available and there next to no crime. What are the best attributes of Manhattan Beach, CA, here is a more complete list.

1.) The Strand.This is a sidewalk, of sorts, except it runs parallel to the beach, from the “90210” house (the one where the TV show was filmed, which is actually in neighboring Hermosa Beach) to 45th Street, a distance of two miles. It’s all at once an outdoor fitness gym for runners and rollerbladers, a social gathering place for people to hang out to look at the ocean or watch the sunset, and a transportation artery taking people to visit friends, go to functions and yes, even to dinner. The Strand takes on a different personality as the day progresses, too: Hard-core runners and surfers in the early morning, families going for morning walks about 8-9, weekend single party people emerging for a little exercise and beach volleyball between 10 and noon, bicyclers throughout the afternoon and more surfers at sunset. It is divided into two sections, one for runners, walkers and strollers, and another for bicyclists and rollerbladers.

2.) The Weather.It’s sunny so often here that on the rare times when clouds take over for a day – or the even more rare times it actually rains – the residents stand with their hands on their waist looking out the windows saying “what a crappy day!” And the temperature? Oh, about 72 degrees some 90% of the time. With no humidly.

3.) The Location.It’s not just the fact it’s on the beach with the Pacific Ocean constantly rolling to shore, It is also just 10 minutes from LAX and 30-40 from downtown Santa Monica and the Westside, Hollywood and Long Beach, and about 45 from some of Orange County’s beaches. So going to USC football games, Laker games or other sporting events is not terribly long and being right next to the airport – with none of the noise – is simply wonderful for frequent travelers. If any place in LA could be considered “centrally located,” it’s Manhattan Beach.

4.) The Fun Food Finds.Manhattan Beach gets little credit from LA food critics for its restaurants, but those people have apparently failed to taste the San Felipe tacos at Shellback Tavern, the pizza at Old Venice, the chowder at Rock ‘n Fish and most certainly the Strand House. Or any of the other great food finds at several of the city’s restaurants. In fact, discovering such treats is one of the great pleasures of dining out in Manhattan Beach.

5.) The Sunsets.This alone could fill up an entire article. Oh wait there is a full page devoted to sunsets on SurfsideSam.com. The sunsets are spectacular anywhere along the beach, from one end of the Strand to the other, and they happen almost every night of the year. Residents stand along the Strand to soak in the day’s final colorful farewell. And how many people in the world get to see a sunset over an ocean? Not many, certainly.

6.) The Sports.Beach volleyball, surfing, rollerblading and all the other physical sports that people play here really define the vast majority of the citizens of Manhattan Beach. Then there are the competitions – there’s some type of beach volleyball tournament nearly every weekend during the summer – and in the fall, there is the Old Hometown Fair 10K.

7.) The Casual “Play Hard” Attitude.Let’s go back to the last point in the previous entry, the Old Hometown Fair 10K. After that 10K, a large portion of the participants – including many race officials – then go the Shellback Tavern for beers and Bloody Mary’s. And that’s just a warm-up to the beer garden at the fair. This, more than anything, defines the culture of Manhattan Beach. People get in their exercise, then they love to enjoy life. Drinking beers and going to bars is a huge part of their life’s enjoyment. Many of these people are long-term locals, and the live this way well into their 60s.

In addition to the Hometown Fair beer garden the first weekend of October, Manhattan Beach’s fun events also include the spectacular Holiday fireworks (second Sunday in December), Holiday Open House (mid November both downtown and in North Manhattan) and the harmless but wacky Surfest/6-man beach volleyball tournament the ultimate “play and party event” (first weekend of August).

8.) The Bars.Continuing on the above theme, Manhattan Beach has always been about its bars. This goes back for decades. The bars are as much a part of Manhattan Beach’s history as Traveler is to USC and John Wooden is to UCLA. In addition to the dives (Shellback, Ercoles) there are nice places (The Strand Bar, Mangiamo, Rock ‘n Fish), sports bars (Shark’s Cove and Sharkeez to the north), a small club (12 + Highland) and even a great live music venue (Pancho’s). There’s diversity in the destinations and the barflies in Manhattan tend to be a bit more, shall we say, “seasoned” than their younger counterparts in Hermosa.

9.) The Lack of Crime.It’s always somewhat of a weekly cheap thrill to pick up a copy of the Beach Reporter and read the Manhattan Beach Crime Report. Most of the items deal with someone having a bicycle swiped from an open garage or an ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend taking some type of jewelry or other item in a post-relationship revenge move. There is the occasional robbery or burglary and there have been people robbed even at gunpoint on the open streets, but those instances are, fortunately, extremely rare. Manhattan Beach is so safe, walking along the Strand or even on the beach at night is so common for locals they do it without giving it a second thought.

10.) The Cops.As seen above they are not the busiest force in LA County. So when something does happen, the police respond as if’s a four-alarm fire. Cars and motorcycles swarm in from everywhere like a pack of killer bees. The town is small – a mere two miles north to south and not much more inland – so they are never far away from anything and the response time is swift, to say the least.

The pace of sales continue to grow faster than the number of homes on the market. Our coastal cities are showing double digit increases in sales since the beginning of the year. Even though our U.S. economy as a whole appears to have gotten off to a slow start in the first quarter consumer confidence doesn’t appear to be wavering significantly and employment shows signs of improvement. Economic reports continue to point to home sales finishing the year at their highest pace since 2006 although accelerating price growth and rising mortgage rates could have the potential to slow sales.

Please enjoy. Should your plans include real estate purchase and sales, please call or email with questions – and as always, thanks for your referrals!

Here’s a great video for Hermosa Beach Little League! Very proud to be a part of such a great community! Thanks to Jason Meugniot at Guidance for great work ! Check out the last shot!!! Pretty awesome!

Happy New Year to one and all. Wishing you and your families the best of everything for 2015.

In addition to sales and economic updates both local and national, this issue brings you State of the City reports from the mayors from the cities of Hermosa, Manhattan and Redondo Beach. All three cities have major happenings you will want to become more familiar with as the year progresses.

Please enjoy. Should your plans include real estate purchase and sales, please call or email with questions – and as always, thanks for your referrals!

State of the City:
Hermosa Beach / Manhattan Beach / Redondo Beach

Hermosa Beach: State of the City
Source: Beach Reporter December 30, 2014

We often refer to Hermosa Beach as the “Best Little Beach City.” It has also become the busiest little beach city, as numerous projects that are going to greatly benefit residents, businesses and visitors alike are currently being worked on and will continue to be top priorities in the upcoming year. Read More

Manhattan Beach: State of the City
Source: Beach Reporter December 30, 2014

I want to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to all Manhattan Beach residents for the honor and privilege of serving our wonderful community as your mayor. As we start the new year, I want to reflect on the accomplishments of our city in 2014 and address the goals and challenges that lie ahead. Read More

Redondo Beach: State of the City
Source: Beach Reporter December 30, 2014

The Beach Reporter has challenged the beach cities mayors to convey our thoughts and ideas for 2015. Attempting to predict the future is always a daunting task, but I can say that Redondo Beach is on the verge of greatness! We enjoy a city that has an exceptional school system, police and fire departments that keep us safe, and a public works department that strives to keep us clean and functioning. Daily, I speak with countless citizens who are extremely happy with life in Redondo Beach. Most of the people in all of our wonderful beach cities are happy and friendly. Of course, that’s why we choose to live here.Read More